Ducati working on a double radar system to introduce in 2020

Bruno Gomes

April 18, 2018

Ducati is testing a double radar system to install on a new model to be launched in 2020

Safety is one of the main focus for motorized vehicles nowadays, and motorcycle manufacturers are working on different technological solutions to increase the safety on two-wheelers.

Ducati is one of those manufacturers, and the Bologna based brand has just officially announced that as part of its “2025 Safety Road Map” program, as soon as 2020 we will see a new Ducati model arriving on the market equipped with two radars.

At the basis of this many-sided strategic plan is the implementation, in the short term, of ARAS (Advanced Rider Assistance Systems) on Ducati motorcycles.

Using sensors and radars, Ducati hopes to implement a series of systems that will help the rider to be safer while riding, systems that will interact and provide feedback with the surrounding environment, helping to prevent collisions with obstacles or other vehicles by alerting the rider.

Ducati started developing these systems as early as 2016, in conjunction with the Department of Electronics, Information and Bioengineering of the Politecnico di Milano University. The study has led to the development of a warning system based on a rear radar, able to identify and point out vehicles present in the “blind spot”.

In 2017 Ducati employees had a patent application filed concerning the algorithms that control the radar, and in the same year further researches showed that fitting a secondary radar, at the front of the bike, would also be possible to maximize the systems efficiency.

Ducati confirms that this double radar system will be introduced to the market when a new model arrives in 2020, and this new model will not only be able to warn the rider of any dangers coming from behind, but this specific bike will also have adaptive cruise control, a system that allows the rider to set a specific distance to a vehicle in front and maintain that distance automatically, while at the same time alerting for possible dangers on the road ahead.

It’s also worth mentioning that Ducati “2025 Safety Road Map” is already being implemented!

Ducati is extending the use of Bosch Cornering ABS to the whole range, and the latest motorcycle to have it is the new Scrambler 1100.